2 Download & Installation
The IRTlib software is provided for offline use (Windows) and for online use (Docker Container).
2.1 Offline (Windows)
The IRTlib software (IRTlib Editor and IRTlib Player) for offline use can be obtained and downloaded from the [Releases] section of the repository https://github.com/DIPFtba/IRTlibDeploymentSoftware.
The two archives TestApp.Editor.Desktop.zip and TestApp.Player.Desktop.zip are available for download in the [Releases] section (https://github.com/DIPFtba/IRTlibDeploymentSoftware/releases).
Note that the latest build can be found in the Preview section of the Release section of the repository.
The automatically generated preview versions of the IRTlib Editor and IRTlib Player are not signed. A warning message from the operating system must be accepted before the programs can be executed.
2.1.1 Study Preparation with Offline Editor
The IRTlib Editor for offline use is provided as a ZIP archive (e.g. TestApp.Editor.Desktop.zip), which must be unpacked. After unpacking the editor, the application TestApp.Editor.Desktop.exe can be started on a Windows device.
The sections Preparation > Overview, Preparation > Studies and Preparation > Survey parts document how to prepare and configure data surveys with the help of CBA ItemBuilder items.
2.1.2 Study Execution with Offline Player
The IRTlib Player is also available as a Windows application for offline use and is provided as a ZIP archive (e.g. TestApp.Player.Desktop.zip). After unpacking the IRTlib Player, a published study configuration is required that is to be used for data collection.
After adding the contents of a published study provided as study configuration, the executable file TestApp.Player.Desktop.exe can be started (either with or without start parameters).
Kiosk Mode: The IRTlib Player can be used directly for data collection via the executable file TestApp.Player.Desktop.exe on the computer on which it is run locally. The Study can be configured so that it is displayed in a Kiosk Mode on one screen and can only be terminated via the Task Manager or the Test Manager Menu (see Full Screen Mode in the section Configuration for display).
Local server: The IRTlib Player can also be run as a local server. After starting the program TestApp.Player.Server.exe, a configured Study can also be delivered via Webbrowser or other browsers with Kiosk Mode (e.g. the Safe Exam Browser). With this configuration, data can be collected, for example, in schools without an Internet connection but with a notebook that acts as a bring-in server.
The sections Data collection > Overview, Data collection > Publish & export and Data collection > Integration & delivery document how data collection can be carried out using the IRTlib Player in the various constellations.
2.2 Online (Docker)
The IRTlib software (IRTlib Editor and IRTlib Player) for online use can be obtained as a Docker container. An example can be found at https://github.com/DIPFtba/IRTlibDeploymentSoftware.
To use the Docker container, it is recommended to check out the repository on the target device (requires git) and run the command ./start.sh in the docker folder (requires installed docker and docker compose) to start the software.
If nothing is changed in the docker-compose.yml file, the editor is accessible via port 8002 and the player software via port 8001.
See the section Data collection > Integration & delivery for more information on using the Docker containers.